Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
A good place to live, if you can afford it. Health is where it shines — it is healthier than 97% of U.S. towns. Sierra Madre ranks 103rd of 841 in California, with a B+ overall. Nationally, it does better than 67% of U.S. towns. It also does well on incomes (A+) — the median household earns $144K. The catch is cost of living — the typical home is worth about $1.4 million, 14.4 years of the Los Angeles metro’s $96K median household income. Hazard risk is weaker too: FEMA rates its natural-hazard risk higher than 94% of U.S. communities, with earthquakes at the top. Only 74 of California’s 1,064 towns score higher on the outdoors.
Figures: health, CDC PLACES · incomes, Census ACS, 2020–24 · home values, Zillow · FEMA National Risk Index · USGS PAD-US.
Where Sierra Madre beats most towns, and one thing worth knowing.
20% of the town is conserved land, across 4 parks and preserves.
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within California), ordered by how far Sierra Madre is from typical.
Its grades run from A+ for jobs and income (better than 98% of comparable towns) to D− for cost of living (better than 1%), so the B+ overall blends very different results.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Census counts: 1,303 in 1910, 11,268 in 2020. The archive holds 6 old photos and papers going back to 1900 and 8 maps from 1896 on.
2 places on the National Register of Historic Places.
Museums, parks, gardens and other places to visit around Sierra Madre. Close and well known come first.
Big draw18 mi LandmarkHollywood Walk of Fame10.0M visitors a year
Big draw22 mi Stadium & arenaSoFi Stadium
Big draw26 mi Theme parkDisneyland17.3M visitors a year
Big draw17 mi MuseumLucas Museum of Narrative Art
Big draw17 mi Stadium & arenaLos Angeles Memorial Coliseum
Big draw13 mi Stadium & arenaDodger StadiumHollywood Walk of Fame: BenSherman, Public domain · SoFi Stadium: Thank You (21 Millions+) views, CC BY 2.0 · Disneyland: HarshLight from San Jose, CA, USA, CC BY 2.0 · Lucas Museum of Narrative Art: Kriddl, CC0 · Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum: CanonStarGal, CC BY-SA 4.0 · Dodger Stadium: Frederick Dennstedt from los angeles, usa, CC BY-SA 2.0
Who provides power, water and the rest in Sierra Madre, and how to reach them.
EPA SDWIS (Oct 9, 2026) · HIFLD + EIA-861 2025 · Census 2020 ZCTAs · NCES 2024–25 · registration: vote.gov, updated Nov 18, 2024.
Ordered by what stands out in Sierra Madre.
Sierra Madre fares better on crime within California than nationally, has less no health insurance than most of California and has milder winter nights than nearly all U.S. towns.
At 14.4 years of the Los Angeles metro’s $96K median household income, the typical home (about $1.39M) costs more against local pay than in 91% of California towns; that ratio is one input to that grade. The median property tax bill is $8,344, against $5,124 across California, another input to its cost-of-living grade.
On the market in Sierra Madre: a median 60 days to sell. Its median rent stands at $2,198 a month, against $1,895 a month in California’s towns and $1,185 a month across U.S. towns. For households locally, the share who live in a home they own is 56%. The typical Sierra Madre home is worth about $1,386,000, about the same as a year ago, 82% above the California typical home.
| Sierra Madre | California towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median rent | $2,198 a month | $1,895 a month | $1,185 a month |
| Households that own their home | 56% | 64% | 73% |
Census ACS, 2020–24 · Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
One of its 6 schools is below, with the reason it’s listed. Public schools: the Pasadena Unified school district.
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sierra Madre ElementaryLargest public elementary schoolGrades K–5 | Grades K–5 | 652 | – |
NCES · EDFacts · graded within CA on state tests and graduation
Its widest gap with California is no health insurance: 3.7% of those 18–64 have no health insurance, against 10.6% statewide.
Sierra Madre: 3.7% of adults 18 to 64 have no health insurance, where California’s towns sit at 9% and U.S. towns at 8.1%. 22% of Sierra Madre adults have obesity. On the CDC’s 32 measures, Sierra Madre is ahead of California on 22 and behind on 3. In Sierra Madre, 13% of adults report frequent mental distress, and 6.8% smoke cigarettes.
| Sierra Madre | California towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Obesity (CDC PLACES) | 22% | 29% | 35% |
| Frequent mental distress (CDC PLACES) | 13% | 17% | 17% |
| Smoke cigarettes (CDC PLACES) | 6.8% | 11% | 14% |
| Get no exercise (CDC PLACES) | 16% | 24% | 25% |
| What stands out | Sierra Madre | CA |
|---|---|---|
| Fewer uninsured adults | 3.7% | 10.6% |
| Fewer adults facing food insecurity | 6.9% | 17.9% |
| More adults who have had cancer | 10% | 6.4% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
In Sierra Madre, the density of trails is 1.5 miles per square mile. Trails run 4.4 miles in 4 parks and preserves. The biggest place to walk is Sierra Madre Historical Wilderness Area, 215 acres with 1.1 miles of trail.
| Sierra Madre | California towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Conserved land | 20% | 4.2% | 4.3% |
| Miles of trail per square mile | 1.5 miles per square mile | 1.0 | 0.4 |
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Bailey Canyon Wilderness Park | 1.2 mi | 69 |
| 2. Sierra Madre Historical Wilderness Area | 1.1 mi | 215 |
| 3. Sierra Vista Park | 0.4 mi | 11 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
Federal aid has come to Sierra Madre households in 4 declared disasters; the latest was in 2025. Expected losses in Sierra Madre break down as 46% from earthquakes and 27% from inland flooding. This California town has had 16 paid flood insurance claims since 1978.
FEMA disaster declarations and aid · FEMA flood insurance claims · FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
Jobs based here grew from 1,682 in 2013 to 2,559.
24% of workers do their job from home in Sierra Madre. Commuting out is the norm here: 6% of working residents work locally. Jobs in Sierra Madre grew by 877 from 2013 to 2023, reaching 2,559. The median commute is under 14 miles.
| Sierra Madre | California towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median household income | $144,000 | $95,000 | $80,000 |
| Work from home | 24% | 14% | 11% |
| Below the poverty line | 4.6% | 10% | 9.6% |
| Average trip to work | 28 minutes | 28 minutes | 25 minutes |
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
January nights average 43.1°, milder than in 96% of U.S. towns; July afternoons average 89.5°.
Sierra Madre’s January low comes in at 43°F. Snow is almost unheard of.
| Sierra Madre | California towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| January low | 43°F | 40°F | 22°F |
| July high | 90°F | 89°F | 85°F |
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
At 15.5 crimes per 1,000 residents a year, it reports less crime than 86% of California’s graded towns.
For Sierra Madre, the level of violent crime is 2.2 per 1,000 residents. Sierra Madre’s property crime rate stands at 7.2 per 1,000 residents.
| Sierra Madre | California towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Property crimes per 1,000 (2025) | 7.2 per 1,000 residents | 13.4 | 9.9 |
| Violent crimes per 1,000 (2025) | 2.2 per 1,000 residents | 2.9 | 1.6 |
FBI crime data, 2025 · crimes reported to police
33 within 15 miles of the center of Sierra Madre
About 7 of every 100 Sierra Madre residents are enrolled in college, about the same as California.
Where Sierra Madre’s working residents go each day. Line width shows the share.
Census LEHD 2023
8 notable people were born in Sierra Madre.
City in California, United States
Sierra Madre (Spanish for "mother range") is a city in Los Angeles County, California, with a population of 11,268 at the time of the 2020 U.S. Census. The city is in the foothills of the San Gabriel Valley below the southern edge of the Angeles National Forest. Pasadena and Altadena are to its west, with Arcadia to its south and east. Sierra Madre is known as "Wisteria City", and its city seal is decorated with a drawing of the now widely known 500-foot (150 m) vine. It is also called the "Village of the Foothills" and was an All-America City in 2007.
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
2 towns share a border with Sierra Madre.
| Town | CA rank | Overall | Cost | Safety | Schools | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sierra Madre | #103 | B+ | D− | B | B | A+ |
| Arcadia | #228 | B− | D− | C− | A | A |
| Pasadena | #421 | C | D− | D | B | A− |
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
For most people who can afford it, yes. Sierra Madre grades B+ overall, better than 67% of U.S. towns and #103 of 841 in California. It grades A+ for health, B for safety and B for schools. Cost of living is its weak spot, with a D−.
Yes. Cost of living, which also weighs rents, property taxes and how many households pay 30% or more of their income for housing, grades D−.
8 notable people were born here, including Young Noble and Ken Hanson.
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